Residents protest Indah Kiat's waste
Residents protest Indah Kiat's waste
Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang
Residents who live close to the Rawa Kucing dumping site in
the Neglasari subdistrict of Tangerang expressed serious concern
about the effects of polluted air from the solid waste being
disposed there by the Tangerang regency's sanitation agency.
"The waste, which produces such a bad smell, really disturbs
us -- we've had to inhale household waste every day, and now we
are facing even worse smells which could cause disease,"
Achmadi, a local resident, told The Jakarta Post.
Achmadi added that the municipal administration needed to take
stern measures against a factory that dumped the waste at the
site.
According to an official of the Tangerang municipality's
sanitation agency, the waste left there belonged to PT Indah
Kiat, a pulp and paper producing company on Jl. Raya Serpong
kilometer 8, Tangerang.
"We have received reports from the municipal irrigation agency
which said that they had caught an agency truck disposing of
solid waste belonging to PT Indah Kiat on Feb. 3," said the
official, speaking on anonymity.
He said only household waste was allowed to be disposed at the
dumping site.
However, Hardjono, an official the municipal environment
agency office, said that his office had yet to receive reports
about factory waste at the disposal, so that the agency could not
take stern measure against the company and regency sanitation's
executive unit.
"If you want to know more about the matter, please go and ask
the municipal public work agency," Hardjono, who is also chairman
of Tangerang environmental law enforcement team told the Post.
Separately, PT Indah Kiat spokesman Luffy Prakuncoro denied
that the company was disposing of solid waste at Rawa Kucing
dumping site.
He said that, in handling the factory's 20 tons of waste
produced daily, the company had cooperated with the Tangerang
regency sanitation's satlak, which should recycle the
waste into fertilizer, in accordance with agreement with PT Indah
Kiat.